Neighbors: South
Hello, neighbors! I have only been back in St. Augustine for a few days and I have not had time to collect a lot of news but I will give you what I have. As you know, this is the column you help to write, so if you live, work or socialize in the area south of State Road 312 and north of State Road 206, please share your personal or organizational news with me and the rest of the neighborhood. My number is 797-8627 and my e-mail is neighbors.south@hotmail.com.

Simple and refreshing
Zabaglione is a simple, refreshing dessert, usually served warm, though it can be served cold, as a sauce, or even frozen. It's actually quite easy to prepare; you just need to have a double boiler set-up, or a stainless steel bowl on top of, but not touching, simmering water.

Serve Fajita steak salad
The acid in Diet Coke helps tenderize the meat in this steak salad. This filling salad has just 253 calories.

This isn't requested Lemon Lush, but it's close
Anna Mae Stevens of Middleport, Pa., was looking for a recipe she misplaced for something she called Lemon Lush. It was a no-bake dessert made with lemon pudding and whipped topping in a graham-cracker crust.

Red, white and blue sangria in just 15 minutes
Traditional sangrias are luscious, bold blends of fruits, wine and spirits, often served in pitchers or punch bowls. But this wonderfully refreshing summer drink from Spain and Portugal leaves plenty of room for improvisation.

Start the day with this breakfast pizza
Eggs may seem an unlikely base for a pizza, but this recipe uses them to bring out the best of two dishes -- pizza and omelets. This is a filling breakfast with just 127 calories for the entire pizza.

Add a little pop to your Fourth
Inspired by the colors and crackles of July Fourth firecrackers, these miniature cakes are studded with flecks of color and go down with a bang thanks to a sprinkling of totally retro Pop Rocks candy.

Way to soften melted gum from clothes dryer
Dear Heloise: Help! Chewing gum melted all over the inside of my clothes dryer. What can I do to get rid of it? I don't want to have to buy a new dryer. -- Lorraine S. from Utah

Great recipes for the holiday
It's Independence Day and to start off the holiday with fun, here are a variety of recipes that your family will enjoy. Have fun over this long weekend.

Many suffer from sudden sleep attacks
DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Have you addressed narcolepsy and cataplexy? I am asking you to share what you know about them. Perhaps you're not interested in narcolepsy. Doctors aren't clamoring to specialize in sleep disorders. Thank you for any information you might have. -- C.S.

Multiple Myeloma support group meets
The North Florida Multiple Myeloma Support Group for patients diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma and their caregivers will meet from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Courtyard-Marriott at The Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville.

Aid for breast cancer patients
Provo, Utah -- A Utah company has announced that women affected by breast cancer could receive $10,000 in financial assistance for medical bills and treatment costs by sharing their stories online.

FCTC teams for health, safety week
During Hyrdo Aluminum's recent Safety Week, students from First Coast Technical College's medical assistant program helped to support the company's goal to keep employees healthy while in the workplace.

Macular degeneration information
DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My sister, who is only 54, has been diagnosed with macular degeneration in both eyes -- the dry kind. We have been unable to find anything about it. We did find that the dry kind is the worse kind, and that laser treatments don't work for it. Is this true? She is on a drug called Vitalux and must take it every day. -- B.T.

June car sales plummet for nearly all automakers
DETROIT -- Nearly all the major automakers reported steep sales declines for June, but for General Motors at least there was consolation: Toyota, its leading international competition, had it worse.

Bush says U.S. to send more troops to Afghanistan
WASHINGTON -- Grappling with a record death toll in an overshadowed war, President Bush promised Wednesday to send more U.S. troops into Afghanistan by year's end. He conceded that June was a "tough month," in fact, the deadliest for U.S. troops in Afghanistan since the war began.

Thieves take bank ATM, leave cash
BELLA VISTA, Ark. -- Thieves in northwest Arkansas made a huge withdrawal at a bank -- they took a whole automated teller machine with them.

Camels, zebras, pigs escape from circus
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands -- Amsterdam police say 15 camels, two zebras and an undetermined number of llamas and potbellied swine briefly escaped from a traveling Dutch circus after a giraffe kicked a hole in their cage.

Fire danger, economic woes cancel fireworks shows
Those seeking the oohs and aahs of traditional Fourth of July fireworks could be sadly disappointed this year: Public displays and sales of boxed firecrackers are being canceled or scaled back across the nation, victims of a sluggish economy, wildfire fears and product shortages caused by a warehouse fire in China.

Correction
There was incorrect information in a Tuesday front-page article on Peg McIntire's memorial.

Tanner-Larizza feud heats up
About 20 off-duty law enforcement officers and others wore black anti-John Tanner shirts to the Flagler County Republican Club candidate forum Tuesday night, but the club tabled its program due to their presence.

Woman shot, man arrested
A man was arrested Tuesday after he allegedly abducted his estranged wife at gunpoint on the Gulf Coast, drove her across the state and dropped her off at Flagler Hospital with an apparent gunshot wound, police said. Click here to watch the video.

County helps close puppy mill
St. Johns County Animal Control Director Paul Studivant this past weekend helped the Humane Society of the United States dismantle a puppy mill of 742 animals, one of the largest ever busted.

Harold J. "Nick" Nichols
Harold J. "Nick" Nichols, 86, of 19 River Road in Tupper Lake, N.Y., and 1039 Alcala Drive in St. Augustine, died peacefully with friends and family at his side, on Monday afternoon, June 23, 2008, at Adirondack Medical Center in Saranac Lake, N.Y.

Bradley Jon Purtlebaugh
Bradley Jon Purtlebaugh, 40, passed away June 25, 2008, at his home. He was born March 5, 1968, in Bloomington, Ind., and he proudly served as a U.S. Marine.

Roy Daniel Lane
Roy Daniel Lane, 84, of Elkton, Fla., passed away at his home on June 29, 2008.

David Carl Strobeck Jr.
David Carl Strobeck Jr., 26, entered into rest June 26, 2008, from a motor vehicle accident. David was born April 18, 1982, in St. Augustine. He recently resided in Port St. Lucie, Fla., Milford, Conn., Allentown, Pa., and Harrisonburg, Va.

Edward C. Downs Sr.
Edward C. Downs Sr., 71, of Avalon, N.J., formerly of Pennsauken, N.J., died on June 22, 2008. He was a frequent visitor to St. Augustine.

David Carl Strobeck Jr.
David Carl Strobeck Jr., 26, entered into rest June 26, 2008, following a motor vehicle accident.

Glen Cardwell
Glen Cardwell, 60, of St. Augustine, died July 1, 2008, at Flagler Hospital. He was born in West Hamlin, W.Va., and resided in St. Augustine since 1992.

Anna B. Franta
Anna B. Franta, 93, of St. Augustine, Fla., died July 1, 2008, at her home.

Pier Murray
Pier Murray, 52, of Rochester, N.Y., formerly of St. Augustine, died June 27, 2008, in New York following a brief illness.

Glen Cardwell
Glen Cardwell, 60, of St. Augustine, died July 1, 2008, at Flagler Hospital.

Private sector should keep ag museum afloat
The loss of steady state funding for the Florida Agricultural Museum, just across our border in Flagler County, begs the question: Who should pay the bills for telling the story, maintaining the site, paying the director's salary?

Letter: Save our small communities
Editor: Despite a virtually non-existant housing market, more than 70,000 new homes are approved to be built in St. Johns County, which will nearly double the amount of housing units already existing.

Letter: Fire fee is county's version of shell game
Editor: I was struck by the clarity of St. Augustine Beach City Manager Max Royle's explanation of the fire fee. He wrote the fee was proposed to "upgrade fire protection services to meet the needs of the expanding population."

Imagining the election
One way to envision the McCain-Obama presidential race is as a boxing match -- particularly like the famous Mohammed Ali championship fights.

Letter: Suggests legalizing hemp and using it for fuel
Editor: I read on the front page of the June 26 Record about the price of corn going up, and therefore so does a lot of other things. One of the letters to the editor complained of the lack of funding in schools while the budget for the prison system is roughly still intact. There were also the "perspective" portion of the issue that was two views on the drilling for oil.

Please give blood to help young cancer patients
This time of the year Catie Carter's family are doing what many of us are doing, getting ready for a July 4 family bar-be-cue. But there's a catch to Catie's celebration. The Carters will be sharing the family barbecue with their extended family at Jacksonville's Nemours Wolfson's Childrens Hospital. Catie is undergoing treatment for neuroblastoma, a cancer commonly found in children.

Letter: Probe not surprising
Editor: I find it very disheartening to hear that we have an FBI criminal investigation taking place on one of our county commissioners. However, disheartening as it may be, I am not surprised. There has too long been a southern good ol' boy network running St. Johns County and it is not surprising that sooner or later someone would be investigated.

Letter: Give up meat for healthier living
Editor: What ever happened to the good old days when the worst things we had to fear on the Fourth of July were traffic jams and wayward fireworks? According to our government's Meat and Poultry Hotline, this year's top fear is food poisoning by those nasty E. coli and Salmonella bugs lurking in inadequately grilled hamburgers and hot dogs. Of course, they don't bother to mention that high-temperature grilling that kills the bugs also forms cancer-causing compounds.

Police Report
The following was compiled from police reports collected from the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office (SJCSO), St. Augustine Police Department (SAPD) and St. Augustine Beach Police Department (SABPD):

Franchitti will meet with team
DAYTONA BEACH -- Dario Franchitti isn't sure what his future holds, but the former open-wheel star said Wednesday he'd like to remain in NASCAR.

Williams sisters closing in on Wimbledon final
WIMBLEDON, England -- One prematch glance Tuesday at the data displayed on those fancy, new digital scoreboards at staid, old Wimbledon provided a pretty persuasive case for why Venus Williams might be considered the woman to beat.

Local Watch
Bartram Trail golfer Julian Suri shot 71 Tuesday at the Marsh Creek Country Club to win medalist honorsat a U.S. Junior Amateur qualifying tournament. Suri's two-round total was 4-under-par 140, defeating Bobby Fredeking by three shots. Joining Suri and Fredeking in reaching the Amateur, which will be July 21-26 at the Shoal Creek Country Club in Birmingham, Ala., is Parker Clowers, who shot even-par 144. St. Augustine's Max McKay was just a shot back and will be first alternate. Suri, who won the Class 2A state championship tournament as a junior at Bartram, just missed qualifying for the U.S. Open last month, falling in a playoff at the sectional qualifying level.

Top pick Giddens joins camp with NBA champs
WALTHAM, Mass. -- The last three players to pose for pictures at a news conference while holding Celtics jerseys in front of them were Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce.

NASCAR leaves many struggling
Nearly every multi-car team has someone whose future is in question with the organization. Whether the team is unhappy, the owner is unhappy or the driver is unhappy, being the odd man out can be a lonely place.

Teamless in Seattle
SEATTLE -- The SuperSonics will move to Oklahoma City for the 2008-09 season as part of a settlement announced Wednesday with the city of Seattle.

Ganassi shuts down Franchitti's team
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- NASCAR team owner Chip Ganassi shut down Dario Franchitti's race team Tuesday because of a lack of sponsorship, putting the former IndyCar Series champion's future in doubt.

Federer, Safin, Nadal win
WIMBLEDON, England -- Five-time champion Roger Federer outclassed Mario Ancic -- the last man to beat him at Wimbledon -- in straight sets Wednesday to reach the semifinals and extend his grass-court winning streak to 64 matches on the first day of significant rain delays at the All England Club.

Local Watch
Local swimmer Kasey Schmidt swam her way to six personal-best times at the TYR Summer Classic Long Course Invitational last weekend at Bolles. Swimming in the Girls 10-and-under division, Schmidt won the 50-meter freestyle with a time of 32.49. She placed second in the 100 backstroke (1:22.82), freestyle (1:11.72) and butterfly (1:23.44).

Where have all the fans gone?
The view from section 219, row 14 in the Metrodome wasn't bad, though being in the middle of a long row meant a night spent pasted to the tiny seats. Minnesota nice only goes so far, so there was no chance of getting up and crawling over people to the aisle unless things got real serious.

Rays beat Sox, stay in first
ST. PETERSBURG -- Evan Longoria went 3-for-4 and drove in three runs as Tampa Bay beat Boston 7-6 on Wednesday night to complete their second three-game sweep of the World Series champions this season.

Local Baseball
The St. Augustine Little League baseball 11-12 all-stars beat Callahan 1-0 Monday night in District 11 play.

Almirola to drive full-time in '09 for DEI
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Dale Earnhardt Inc. will use Aric Almirola full-time next season in a promotion that will free Mark Martin to move to Hendrick Motorsports next season.

Florida execution goes smoothly
JACKSONVILLE -- Eighteen months after Florida botched its last execution, its new lethal injection procedures resulted in what appeared to be a smooth and peaceful death for child killer Mark Dean Schwab.

Hezbollah said to train Shiite militiamen
BAGHDAD -- Hezbollah instructors trained Shiite militiamen at remote camps in southern Iraq until three months ago when they slipped across the border to Iran -- presumably to continue instruction on Iranian soil, according to two Shiite lawmakers and a top army officer.

Sunnis closer to rejoining Shiite-led government
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Iraq's main Sunni Muslim political bloc is on the verge of rejoining the Shiite-led government after a nearly a year-long boycott, a step widely seen as vital to reconciling the nation's warring factions.

Election violence flares in Mongolia
BEIJING -- The capital of Mongolia remained under a state of emergency Wednesday after five people were killed in post-election violence amid allegations of voter fraud.

Famine threatens millions in Somalia, Ethiopia
By the end of the year, U.N. officials predict, nearly half of this nation's population, or about 3.5 million people, will need food aid, a dramatic spike driven by rampant political insecurity, skyrocketing global food prices, the devaluation of the local currency and a failure of nature's mercy, rain.

Palestinian goes on rampage through Jerusalem; 3 dead
JERUSALEM -- A Palestinian laborer driving a construction vehicle rammed into packed buses, tossed cars into the air and rolled over pedestrians in a deadly rampage Wednesday that killed three people and wounded dozens in Jerusalem.

Training in a virtual Iraq
WASHINGTON -- To a soldier who has been in Iraq, the sights, sounds and smells are familiar: the pop of an AK-47, the flash of a bomb, the stench of cordite.